Streams of Mercy
In a recent issue of PW’s magazine Horizons, I came across an article by Teresa Waggener, an Assistant Stated Clerk and immigration attorney for the Office of Immigration Issues in the Office of the General Assembly of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) – “Migration: Common Story, Common Cause.” It’s no secret that we are experiencing a worldwide refugee crisis. Sixty-five million people are displaced due to civil war, persecution and famine. Every day, people arrive at U. S. borders and airports asking for asylum or other forms of humanitarian immigration relief.
In the article, we are invited to read the book of Ruth, the story of a family on the move, leaving their beloved homeland to save their lives. We are invited to read the story “as a fellow citizen of heaven, with Naomi and her relations as our common ancestors. With this common bond at the forefront of our minds, we are asked to consider this nation’s current immigration system. Does it honor human rights? Is it structured to adequately address the situations that cause migration? Does it humanely respond to the needs of those whom it encounters?”
Waggener shares these facts about our current immigration policies: asylum seeking families are placed in detention, then undergo a rapidly-paced court process, often without the assistance of an attorney, and all too often are deported back to the country from which they fled; the current system causes extended family separation; one of the newest policies expands the number of people who are “enforcement priorities” to close to all the 11 million people in the country who are undocumented; beneficiaries of the DACA program will lose legal status and the ability to work in the U.S. as their expiration dates come; the 300,000 individuals lawfully present in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status have been told the Department of Homeland Security is reviewing to end the extension of their temporary protected status.
After exploring our immigration policies within the framework of the book of Ruth, Waggener concludes: “If, as the descendant of Naomi, you find any aspect of our current immigration system unjust or inhuman, you are not alone. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) when it meets every two years at the General Assembly, has been faithfully making statements in support of migrants and refugees since its first in 1893 against the Chinese Exclusion Act.”
She challenges us to be truth-tellers: “Refugees can only be refused safe haven, asylum-seekers can only be locked up, families can only be blamed for the economy, and longtime neighbors can only be vilified - if we are not speaking and representing the truth. We must faithfully and accurately speak the truth to counter the fear, the racism and the scapegoating around us.”
I know very little about immigration issues, and considering them within the framework of the Book of Ruth is challenging. It is something I believe we need to do as a part of being faithful disciples in our day.
Elizabeth